


Our Days Are Numbered

by kommissarisbae



Category: Pitch Perfect (Movies)
Genre: Becomissar, F/F, Romance, Travel, becissar - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-04
Updated: 2015-09-02
Packaged: 2018-04-12 23:04:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 12,417
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4498089
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kommissarisbae/pseuds/kommissarisbae
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Becomissar AU based on Angie Stanton's Royally Lost. Beca Mitchell is your typical recently graduated high school student until her family forces her to go on a European river cruise and she meets Luisa. However, she doesn't know that Luisa is hiding something from her.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Beca Mitchell had never really liked her stepmother Sheila and lately she wasn’t a big fan of her father Dr. Mitchell either. Mostly, because he sided with Sheila on everything. She knew that Sheila was trying to get along with her, but that didn’t make too much of a difference to her. Everyone tried; that didn’t mean they succeeded. However, Sheila had a tendency to try a little too hard.

The biggest evidence of this was Sheila’s latest idea – a river cruise through Europe. Fifteen days, four countries, twelve guided tours, and almost four thousand dollars a person just to do it. And it was smack in the middle of when Beca was supposed to be a camp counselor at Camp Torrance with all her friends. 

Now, instead of getting ready to spend her weekdays playing silly games with the campers and her weekends getting drunk around a bonfire with her friends she was going to be going on the lamest vacation ever with her parents. She wasn’t even allowed to bring a friend. Not that any of them would come with. They were all looking forward to being counselors at Camp Torrance. 

“Beca? Are you almost ready?” Sheila asked as she poked her head into Beca’s room and smiled. Beca forced herself to smile back even though she wanted to wince at Sheila’s hot pink lipstick and bottle blonde hair. 

“Yeah.” Beca stood up and kicked her duffle bag. All of her favorite clothes, books, and electronics had been stuffed inside of it. 

Sheila frowned at the ratty old sky blue duffle bag with CT (Camp Torrance) written on the side. Her stepmother had bought her a new set of luggage as a graduation present. However, Sheila didn’t say anything and forced a tightlipped smile. 

“Great. The taxi will be here in five minutes, kiddo. We’re flying to Paris tonight – which is over eight hours so you should sleep on the plane and, don’t worry, I brought Dramamine to knock you out. Then we have a two hour layover in Paris before our two hours flight to Budapest. The cruise shuttle will pick us up at the airport.” Sheila reminded her, obviously excited.

Beca forced another smile. “That sounds great.”

“I’ll buy us all some snacks for the flight. Your dad said you love gummy worms so I’ll make sure to grab some of those.” 

“Thanks, Sheila.”

\--  
Luisa was stared down by her mother and father. They were a force to be reckoned with; all black designer clothing, perfect blond hair, and both so tall – each over six feet tall with her mother in heels. But so was Luisa. 

“I am not going out with that boy.” Luisa protested calmly, crossing her arms over her chest. 

“’That boy?’” Her mother asked and took a deep breath as she massaged her temples like she had a headache. Luisa knew that she likely didn’t, but was attempting to guilt her into submission.

“’That boy?’ is the heir to an incredible fortune and if you two start dating then his family will consider the proposed merger.” 

“You can’t marry me off,” Luisa argued. “It’s not the seventeenth century where you can marry me off to create alliances. It’s 2015 and I am an adult. I’m able to make my own choices.”

“An adult, Luisa?” Her mother smiles mockingly. “Really? You’re barely eighteen, you’ve never worked a day in your life, and all you do for this family is cause trouble. Riding around town on that motorcycle of yours like some hoodlum. A motorcycle that we paid for, wearing an expensive leather jacket that we paid for—“

Luisa held up a hand to silence her. “I get it. You can control my life with your money.”

“Why don’t you go to your room to cool off for a bit, Luisa?” Her father suggested as his phone began to chime. Of the two, he was the one who disliked confrontation the most, especially when Luisa and her mother clashed. 

Because she liked her father and didn’t want to be around her mother any longer, Luisa gave him a gruff nod and started off towards her room. 

She just had no plan to stay there or anywhere in her parents’ goddamn house. It took her a short time to pack a backpack full of the essentials, disable the GPS on her cellphone, and sneak out to her motorcycle. She had timed it perfectly so that she left right after her parents went to a black-tie fundraiser where they would stall for more time to get her and that boy together. 

Luisa smiled as she zoomed through the gates on her motorcycle, the evening air filling her lungs. With her visor down and leather jacket on, no one would recognize her and that’s exactly what she wanted. For a few hours, she didn’t want to be Luisa the heiress to a billion dollar Tech Empire. She just wanted to be another rebellious teenager.   
Maybe even for a few days. She wanted – needed - to get away for a while so she pulled over on a quiet side street and searched for train tickets from Berlin to Budapest. 

She purchased one for a train leaving in twenty minutes and zipped off. The train ride would be seventeen hours, which would give her time to sleep and collect her thoughts. And it would give her parents time to realize that she was gone.

By the time she would be in Budapest, her parents would be in a panic and when she finally decided to go home they would be so relieved she was home they would forget all about the merger. 

\--  
By the time Beca arrived on the riverboat in Budapest, she was wide awake after sleeping on both plane rides and during the layover, which got extended due to the weather. Although her father and Sheila wanted nothing more than take a nap, Beca decided to go on the walking tour even though it sounded terribly lame. At least she would be able to get some nice pictures of Europe to show off to her friends.

Soon she found herself in Budapest’s covered market with a group of tourists that all stuck out like a sore thumb. Tired of the droning tour guide, Beca slipped away from the group to do some exploring on her own. Things were very crowded and she found herself colliding with a tall blonde girl shortly after getting away. 

“I am so sorry.” Beca exclaimed as she looked up who she’d hit. Up close, the woman was even more beautiful than she had originally noticed with blonde hair up in a messy bun and tight black jeans that hugged legs that went on for miles. Under her arm, the woman – no, she was more of a girl Beca figured as she looked like a teenager – had a motorcycle helmet.

“It was my fault,” the blonde said and smiled down at Beca in a way that made the brunette feel like she was undressing her with her eyes. Butterflies fluttered wildly in her stomach and her cheeks turned bright red. It took her a moment to realize that the woman was speaking with a German accent. 

“No-“ Beca started.

“It was my fault. Now, let me buy you a drink to make up for it.” The blonde smiled down at her and Beca found herself nodding as she was led towards a nearby bar. 

It was only once they were in the bar and the German girl was ordering them drinks that Beca realized she was eighteen and too young to be drinking. 

“I-I can’t drink,” Beca protested as the German girl handed her a drink. 

“Oh, tiny maus,” The blonde girl tutted. “This isn’t America. This is Hungary. You are eighteen, no?”

Beca nodded. 

“Then you can drink here.” 

The brunette took a sip of the drink and the alcohol burned as it went down her throat, but she couldn’t take her eyes off the German girl as she ordered them another round.

“Call me Kommissar, tiny maus.”


	2. Chapter 2

Beca woke up with a throbbing headache. At first, she was confused as to where she was as she sat up and the room spun around her. Instead of her light blue bedroom walls, she saw white walls and a completely foreign view. Panic flashed through her until she realized that she was on a riverboat on a cruise in Europe.

On the table beside her bed, her phone buzzed again with a reminder notification. There were two missed text messages from Kommissar, who Beca didn’t remember putting a heart next to her name, but apparently she had.

The first message, from 11:04PM, read: **Did you get home OK?**

The second message was from five minutes ago and was a picture of two coffee cups, one that had Beca’s name on it, and two croissants. **You promised we’d get breakfast.**

Beca was up in a flash, despite the pain in her head, and pulled clothes at random from her dufflebag. When she’d packed, she had had the foresight to put outfits together. In the bathroom, there was a bottle of ibuprofen. Beca knocked back two without even taking a sip of water before starting to get ready to go met up with Luisa.

_Maybe this trip won’t suck as much as I thought._

* * *

__

Kommissar smiled down at her phone when she received the text from Beca that said she was on her way. This girl was quite something and they hadn’t even known each other for a full twenty four hours yet.

Her phone buzzed again with another text from her parents appeared on the screen. They had called her twice, texted three times, and even attempted to video conference. Each time, she ignored them. Neither of them seemed desperate enough yet. After all, it wasn’t the first time that she had disappeared. It had only been a day, there was no way they were panicking yet.

Still, she decided to read the text.

**Luisa,**

**If you aren’t home by dinner tonight we will freeze your bank account.**

“Crap,” Luisa swore and glanced around. Luckily, there was an ATM in the café and she darted over to take out all five hundred dollars of her daily spending limit. Even though she knew that her parents would be able to trace the location of the ATM from which she withdrew the money, she needed the money more than she feared her parents.

“Hey, Kommissar.” Beca’s voice was comforting and familiar. Luisa turned around to see the brunette and smiled down at her.

“It’s nice to see you again, tiny maus.” Luisa said with a smile as she looked down at the brunette. She put a hand over her mouth to stifle a smile. Beca was wearing a pair of jeans with a ridiculous Big Bang Theory t-shirt that said “Bazinga!” on it.

Beca frowned when she heard the laughter. “What’s wrong with my outfit? Did I get toothpaste on my shirt?”

“No. It’s just a funny shirt.” Luisa assured her as she led her back to the table where their cups of coffee were waiting for them. There was only one croissant remaining because Luisa had already eaten hers. She hadn’t had a full meal since she left Berlin and the snack she had last night with Beca at the bar had barely been anything.

Beca took a seat across from her and took a sip of her coffee. “This is really good. How did you find this place?”

“Just dumb tourist luck,” Luisa lied. Her mother loved to travel and she had been to Budapest several times before and this coffee shop was one her family’s favorites.

“You’re a tourist, too then?” The brunette asked. She had already downed a good amount of her coffee. Now that they were in better light, Luisa was able to see that Beca barely looked hungover and had even put on a little bit of makeup.

“Of course. I’m originally from Germany and I start university in the fall. My parents are letting me travel Europe as long as I stay in hostels, visit family, and check in twice a day.” The lie came to her easily and while Luisa felt bad about lying to this girl, she had to remind herself that Beca was a fling. An American girl on vacation in Europe. What a cliché.

Beca, obviously buying into the lie, gawked at her. “That’s an incredible. My parents would never let me do that. Although, this trip is a graduation present. Fifteen days, five countries, and thirteen horrible guided tours with increasingly boring tours. In fact, there’s one going on now but I told my parents I wanted to go explore something I’d read about online.”

Luisa chuckled. “Well, I can show you around if you’d like. Since it looks like it will be our last day together.”

The brunette’s face fell and she looked down at her coffee and half eaten croissant. She thought for a moment, like Luisa had hoped she would. Although she had left Berlin without a plan, this little American girl had just given her one.

“Maybe, if you’re going around Europe on your own, you could follow the river cruise. We’re going to Austria next; two days in Vienna, one in Melk. Then we’re spending most of our time in Germany, which I know won’t be too exciting for you since that’s where you’re from.” Beca explained excitedly. As she talked, her eyes lit up and Luisa smiled.

 _She has beautiful eyes and an amazing smile._ Luisa thought and then caught herself. She was staring at Beca and had just agreed to go back to Germany. “Wait. Where in Germany does this go?”

“One sec,” Beca said and dug through her purse for a moment and pulled out an itinerary. Luisa looked it over and grinned. Nowhere near Berlin. It was perfect and she would get a nice trip to the Netherlands afterward.

“This looks like fun.” Luisa said and smiled at Beca. Beca smiled back. “Now, let’s get started on that sightseeing.”


	3. Chapter 3

After spending an entire afternoon getting to know Kommissar better, Beca had been dropped off at the boat by the blonde girl, who had also kissed her cheek goodnight. Part of Beca had hoped that Kommissar would kiss her lips instead of her cheeks. Still, the kiss sent shivers down her spine and the butterflies in her stomach fluttered crazily.

She had fallen asleep that night with Kommissar’s lips on her mind and she had woken up the very next minute wondering when she would see the blonde girl again. Of course, she already knew the answer to that. They’d planned that last night. Kommissar would follow the river cruise and would meet her when the boat arrived that night in Vienna.

“Becs?” Dr. Mitchell asked as he knocked on the door and entered. Beca looked up from her laptop screen and then closed her laptop.

“What’s up, Dad?” The brunette asked.

“I feel like I haven’t seen you in forever and we took this trip to spend time together as a family. Sheila and I were wondering if you’d like to have brunch with us. And before you say no, there’s no tour you can escape off to. We’re on a moving boat.” Dr. Mitchell reminded her. Although his words were joking, his tone was stern.

Beca sighed. “Sure. Sorry, I’ve been busy. I just got more into this tour than I thought I would.”

Dr.Mitchell’s expression softened and he even smiled slightly. “I am pretty glad to hear that. Knowing you have more interests than DJ-ing, music, and tumblr is very reassuring.”

“I still like DJ-ing, music, and tumblr.” Beca joked. “I will be studying music production in college.”

“Yes. At Barden University. Where I work. I think I’ve been aware of that for a while.” Dr.Mitchell sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “However, after this trip and your interest in Europe, perhaps you’d consider a second major. Maybe in European History."

“We’ll see,” Beca replied noncommittally.

* * *

 

Luisa had taken off for Vienna first thing that morning. She’d slept at a hostel the night before and had the place mostly to herself. Which had been perfect because she’d spent a lot of her time mentally scolding herself for not kissing Beca when she’d had the chance. Beca had obviously wanted it as well.

On the ride to Vienna, she decided that the next chance she got, she would kiss Beca Mitchell. They only had so much time and it felt like it was already running out. However, each time they were together, the countdown on their budding relationship disappeared.

An hour away from Vienna, she stopped for gas and a snack. While inside the gas station, she was browsing through the aisles and looking over the junk food. Her mother had never allowed her to eat anything that wasn’t either extremely healthy or extremely expensive. Beside the chocolate, she saw a stand of magazine tabloids.

Another twig-like actress was splashed across the cover with more cheating allegations. However, in the corner of the magazine cover was a small headline that read: “Heiress on the Run.” The picture that accompanied it was one that Luisa had never liked. It was a picture of her a long sky blue gown standing beside her mother, who had been cropped out for the tabloid.

Her lips tightened into a thin line and she grabbed the magazine. Flipping to the page that the headline indicated, she tried her best not to contain her anger.

_Heiress on the Run!_

_Luisa Müller has been reported as missing by her parents as of Monday. While her parents have assured the media that they are not worried, they also mentioned that this is not the first time that Luisa had run away! In fact, it’s they say that they’ve lost count of how many times she’s disappeared._

_However, they are concerned as this is the longest she’s been gone. They traced her latest bank withdrawal to an ATM in a café in Budapest and a café worker mentioned that she saw the billionaire heiress with a brunette girl._

Luisa growled as she closed the paper and tossed it back onto the rack. She bought her snacks before returning to her bike. Sitting on the curb by her bicycle, she snacked on junk food and checked her cellphone again. There was another voicemail from her mother.

At first there was silence for a short while before her mother began talking: “Luisa. I cannot believe that you are still not answering your cellphone. This is my sixth phone call so I thought a voicemail would be appropriate. Your father and I are furious that you’ve been gone for so long. We’ve decided that we will have to send our security team after you. They _will_ bring you home no matter what. We will not stand for this diso—“

Luisa deleted the voice mail, threw away the junk food wrappers, and got back on her bike. Fear was roiling around in her stomach, killing her appetite. She had never been away from home like this before and her parents had never sent anyone after her before. With her parent’s money and tech empire, she was worried about the kind of access that they would have – to security cameras and more.

They would find her. She was confident of that. It was only a matter of time. And there was no way they would get to her before she had a chance to at least say goodbye to Beca – and get that kiss.

She got back on her motorcycle and started off towards Vienna, speeding as much as she dared. A traffic violation was the last thing that she needed.

==

Luisa was waiting at the dock, leaning up against a street light in her black leather jacket looking like a million bucks, when Beca’s river cruise arrived. The little brunette walked off with her family and Luisa pretended to be interested in her cellphone. Her _new_ cellphone. She had thrown away the old one, fearing being trapped and bought a new prepaid one so there was no way for them to track her.

For a short while, Luisa trailed Beca’s family as they went along a guided tour. Finally, Beca slipped away with the excuse that she wanted to go see an art gallery that she had read about online. They complained for a short while but eventually accepted it and Beca hurried over to Luisa once her parents were out of view.

“Hey, long time no see!” Beca said with a smile as she hugged Luisa. The tall blonde pulled her into a tight embrace and smiled back.

“It has only been a day. Not even.” Luisa reminded her as Beca eventually pulled away from her to look up at her with those beautiful eyes. The blonde girl felt the butterflies flutter in her stomach again.

Beca rolled her eyes at Luisa’s response. “So, what did you have planned for us today?”

“It was going to be a surprise, but I know how much you hate surprises. We’re going to have a picnic dinner. I know that you must be starving.” Luisa held up a brown paper bag that smelled absolutely delicious and had Beca’s mouth watering.  

They walked around for a short while, enjoying the sights before Luisa found a suitable place for them to sit down and enjoy the meal that Luisa had bought for them. Beca, whose stomach was rumbling, practically tore the paper bag out of Luisa’s hands, making the blonde giggle.

“Perhaps, I should call you feisty maus.” Luisa joked as she watched Beca unpack sandwiches, two sodas, and packaged salads.

“No forks?” Beca asked and Luisa pulled out two black plastic forks from her backpack.

The two of them ate in silence as Beca scarfed down her sandwich, salad, and half of Luisa’s salad before even taking a sip of the soda that Luisa had brought them. Luisa only smiled at her tiny maus.

“Stop staring at me,” Beca said through a mouthful of sandwich and sent crumbs down her shirt. “It’s creepy.”

Luisa rolled her eyes and brushed the crumbs off of Beca’s shirt. On impulse, she leaned in and pressed her lips against Beca’s. The brunette was taken off guard and it took her a few moments to lean in and kiss her back. Luisa’s arms snaked around Beca’s waist and pulled her in close, fingers tightening in the brunette’s shirt.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm totally new to this whole AO3 thing so bear with me on the formatting


	4. Chapter 4

Luisa had been reluctant to leave Beca when the time came for the brunette to return to her river cruise ship. They'd spent several minutes kissing by the river's edge before having to say goodbye for the night. A couple people stared and one teenage boy in a flock of teenagers even whistled at them. Luisa hadn't even pulled away from Beca when she flipped him off even though the brunette flushed crimson. 

"Good night!" Luisa called again as Beca stood on the deck of the boat and waved even though with the distance and number of people she couldn't hear her. 

Beca's parents - or her father and his new wife Sheila as Beca had explained to her - appeared beside her and Luisa turned away to disappear into the crowd. She walked slowly back to her motorcycle and bought dinner on the way. As she put the change in her wallet, she noted that she only had several hundred dollars left. 

_I'll have to stop spending so much money on Beca if I want to be able to spend more time on my own_ , Luisa thought as she stuffed the wallet into her backpack and got on the motorcycle. She started to drive towards the hostel that she had read about online and wove her way through the evening traffic. 

She arrived at the hostel and got herself a bed. When she walked into the room, there were two other travelers already there. A blonde girl with a perky smile who was chatting on her bluetooth. Her bags had "Aubrey Posen" embroidered on them. The other was a man with dark hair who seemed strangely familiar from behind. When he suddenly turned around, Luisa felt her stomach drop. 

"Luisa!" Pieter stared at her in shock before beginning to speak in German. "I cannot believe you're here. Your parents are furious with you. I've never seen them so mad. There are people looking for you all over Europe!"

"I know. I saw the article." Luisa replied as she set down her backpack on an unclaimed bed. 

"You have to go home!"

Luisa raked a hand through her hair and shoved it out of her face before tying it up with a black hair tie. "It's not that simply anymore. I...I met someone..."

"You met someone?" Pieter's expression softened slightly. 

"Yeah. Her name is Beca and she's Americsn. She's absolutely amazing and–" She started to babble, but Pieter held up a hand to shush her. 

"You've only just met her. You ran away five days ago so you've probably on known her for like four. I'm not letting you throw away your family for some girl you haven't even known for a week." Pieter argued. Although they had been friends for a long time, he had always been the sensible one. At least when it came to big decisions. 

"And I like her!" Luisa protested, her outburst causing the blonde girl in the room to give her nasty glare and walk out into the hallway. "Sorry, I really care about her."

"You love her?" Pieter guessed. "After four days?" 

"I think so. As stupid as that sounds." Luisa sighed. 

Pieter smiled slightly as he sat down and put his arm around Luisa. Although it was a bit awkward as they were nearly the same size. “It’s not stupid, Luisa. It’s you. You fall hard and fast. That’s just how it always seems to happen.”

“Do not mention Clara,” Luisa shuddered and Pieter started laughing, patting the blonde girl on the back.

“I won’t.” Pieter assured her with a cheeky smile. “But only because I love you.”

* * *

 

It was over dinner that her parents asked her the dreaded question. Beca had prayed that her parents’ observational skills were sorely lacking, but apparently she had been letdown. Sheila had given her one of those “I’m-trying-to-be-motherly-without-attempting-to-take-the-place-of-your-mother” looks and her father had put on his teaching face.

“We’ve noticed that there’s been the same blonde girl these past few days,” Dr. Mitchell had started out and forced a bit of a nervous smile as he looked at Beca over a plate of appetizers.

“Oh…” Beca replied as she pushed some food around on her plate. She had eaten with Luisa and was absolutely stuffed. However, she was afraid of her parents noticing her apparent lack of appetite. The last time she skipped a meal, Sheila had left pamphlets with titles like “Talking About Your Anorexia” on her bed.

Sheila pursed her lips. “Do you know her, Beca?”

“We only ask because we’re worried that someone is following you. You know that in _Taken-”_ Dr. Mitchell started, but was stopped when Beca groaned and set her fork down.

"Please, please don’t mention _Taken_. You’re so afraid that I’ll get human trafficked or something.” Beca sighed and picked up her fork again, going back to pushing her food around her plate to make it look like she was eating more than she was.

“So, Becs, do you know her?” Dr. Mitchell asked.

“Yeah, I do. We met in Budapest and her parents are letting her do this European traveling thing this summer.” Beca explained as she looked down at her plate. “We hit it off and she’s been following the river cruise so that we can hang out.”

Dr. Mitchell and Sheila exchanged a look for a moment.

“Well, we’re glad that you’re making friends.” Sheila assured her with one of her typical, pleasant smiles. Although this one seemed like it was rather forced.

“We are,” Dr. Mitchell chimed in.

* * *

 

It was 8:30AM – thirty minutes before she was supposed to meet Beca – Luisa heard her phone buzz. She had woken up hours ago, shaken up from her run in with Pieter and afraid he would tell her parents. However, he had promised that he wouldn’t breathe a word to anyone.

When Luisa checked her cellphone, she sucked in a nervous breath as she read and re-read the words.

> **Hey, I know that we didn’t talk about this, but my parents noticed you. They know we’re friends – didn’t mention the other stuff – and they want to meet you. Cool?**

Shaking her head, Luisa punched in her response: **Sure.**

After a thought, she decided to delete the period as it made her seem angry about it. The absolute last thing that she wanted was to mess up a new relationship. She really liked Beca and, despite the short time, it felt like they had been together for a while.

> **Awesome! Sorry about springing this on you. Make it up to you later ;)**

Luisa smiled at her phone before slipping it in to her pocket and going to find a place to put her bike. After ensuring that her bike would be alright while she spent her morning meeting Beca’s parents, she started going towards the meet up point her in Beca agreed upon.

She was relieved in a way that they would be meeting with Beca’s parents present. It made the relationship feel legitimate. And it would be a free meal. Free was always good when on the run from family with dwindling funds.

“Hey!” Beca smiled as she flagged down Luisa and pulled her aside. A few yards away was a nice looking, albeit it obviously tourist couple, that Luisa could only assume were Beca’s parents.

_Dr. Mitchell and Sheila,_ Luisa reminded herself.

“Kommissar, I know that’s what you like to be called but there is no way that my parents will accept this as your real name. So, out with it.” Beca looked up with her at those big blue eyes and there was no way that Luisa could say no.

She sighed and shrugged her shoulders before looking back at her tiny maus. “Luisa.”

Beca looked surprised and a small smile danced across her lips. She blinked a couple times to get herself back to the present and her grin spread wider across her face.

“That’s beautiful,” the brunette grabbed Luisa’s arm and pulled her towards Sheila and Dr. Mitchell. Sheila smiled, but Dr. Mitchell awkwardly stood there like he was sizing her up.

“You must be Beca’s friend,” Dr. Mitchell said as he looked up at Luisa. In her heels, she was about an inch taller than him, a fact that obviously made him uncomfortable.

“I am,” Luisa said and extended her hand for him to shake. He stared at it dumbly for a moment before shaking it.

“Pleasure to meet you…”

“Luisa.”


	5. Chapter 5

“Meeting my parents wasn’t so bad?” Was the first thing out of Beca’s mouth when they managed to weasel their way in to having some alone time. It had taken half the day and Luisa had answered countless questions about herself during that time. She stuck to the backstory she’d thought up in the half hour she’d had to prepare for meeting Beca’s parents.

She was Luisa Weber, a recently graduated German high school student, who was traveling all over Europe before she would be going to college back in Germany. Part of it was true, she had graduated recently – two years ago was recent – and she was going to a college in Germany. However, she also had to live at home during that time; something she had failed to mention.

The biggest lies had been about her family. She hadn’t given her parents real names as one quick Google search would reveal the truth. And she _knew_ that Beca’s parents, or at least Sheila, would be the type of person to Google her parents. She had also neglected to mention her distaste for her family and the truth about how much money that they had.

She didn’t mind lying to Beca’s parents. It was lying to Beca that bothered her. However, there was no way that she could tell Beca the truth this early on. Not when the truth involved admitting that not only were her parents disgustingly wealthy, but that she was running away from a seemingly perfect home and private investigators were hunting her down.

It was just a little too much for only having known each other for five days.

“Luisa!” Beca said, snapping her fingers in front of Luisa’s face and having to reach up to do so.

Luisa shook her head and looked at him. “Yes, tiny maus?”

“You were totally zoned out. And didn’t you say that you had something special planned for today?”

"I did, didn't I?" Luisa smiled as she remembered what she had planned for that day. She took Beca's hand and started to lead her towards where she had left her motorcycle.

Beca went along as they wound their way through the crowd. "Wait! Where are we going? I'm supposed to text my parents updates."

"It's a surprise, tiny maus."

"Stop calling me that!"

Luisa grinned even wider as they stopped in front of the motorcycle and Beca started to shake her head. She stepped back, pulling her arm out of the blonde's grip and looked from Luisa to the motorcycle.

"No way." The brunette insisted as she looked at the motorcycle again and saw that there were two helmets. One obviously went with the motorcycle and had the letters **LMM** in red lettering while the other looked much more feminine - all pink.

"Yes way." Luisa argued and passee Beca the pink helmet. The brunette sighed and put it on. She'd tried to convince Luisa to do things her way before and, somehow, the blonde always managed to twist things so she got what she wanted.

Luisa put on the black helmet with her backpack on like usual and Beca got on behind her, tightly wrapping her arms around the blonde woman. She pressed herself up against the blonde as the motorcycle took off and the hum of the engine went through her body. As they sped out of the city, Beca felt her nerves melt away as she was finally settled enough to look at the Austrian countryside as it zipped by.

There was no point in asking Luisa where they were going. Beca simply held on and enjoyed the ride. Now that it was no longer terrifying, riding on the back of Luisa's motorcycle was almost exhilarating. Or at least fun. Traffic thinned till they were the only ones on the road. By now, Beca noted, Luisa had slowed enough that they had a better view of what they passed.

Finally, after what felt like forever, Luisa pulled off to the side of the road and turned off the bike. She took off her helmet and turned to grin at Beca before helping her take off the pink helmet.

"Now, that wasn't so bad, was it?" The blonde asked teasingly as she looked at the slightly disheveled brunette. Beca had terrible helmet hair from that awful pink thing and her usually tame brown looks poked out at odd angles.

"What is it?" Beca demanded when she noticed the strange look Luisa was giving her. She climbed off the bike and put her hands on her hips.

"Your hair," Luisa said coolly, "looks like a porcupine."

Beca turned bright red and her hands flew to smooth down her hair, but Luisa beat her to it. The blonde's fingers were already gently smoothing down her hair and sending tingles down her spine. It took Beca a few moments to realize she was simply standing there dumbly as Luisa fussed over her and composed herself.

"Thanks," Beca said and pulled away. "So, what are we doing out here in the middle of nowhere?"

Luisa grinned wickedly and took Beca’s hand. She started to walk with her up a grassy hill.“It’s another surprise.”

“You are really making me like surprises.”

Together, they walked up the hill with Luisa seeming almost uncharacteristically eager. This only served to ratchet up Beca’s anxiety and the butterflies started to flutter in her stomach. Despite what she told Luisa, she still hated surprises. Actually, loathed was a better word. From years, she’d learned that surprises brought nothing but bad things. Her mother’s death had been a surprise. Sheila’s arrival into her life had been a surprise. Surprises, in her experience, tended to be bad things.

Standing in front of her with a massive grin, Luisa spread her arms and said “ta-da!” before stepping aside to reveal an enormous house and a beautiful pool in the backyard. Beca’s jaw dropped as she stared at it. The house – house was the wrong word, mansion – was big enough to house an army and the pool looked Olympic sized.

“What is this place?” she asked, her voice filled with wonder.

“A family friend’s house,” Luisa replied and glanced away from her for a moment. Suddenly, she pulled off grey t-shirt and smiled at Beca. “A friend who isn’t around. Now, let’s go skinny dipping!”

Beca shook her head and held up her hands defensively. “No way.”

It was hard to say no to a hot girl in a black lace bra who was unlacing her combat books, but Beca stood firm even as Luisa gave her a look that made her mouth go dry. She shook her head to clear it and to convey her point again.

“Fine, underwear then.” Luisa conceded as she began unbuttoning her jeans now that her combat boots had been cast aside. “And don’t give me that look. Those skimpy bikinis you Americans love so much show way more than most underwear.”

Beca sighed and pulled off her flannel top. By now, Luisa was stripped down and the brunette could see that the blonde’s panties did indeed match her bra. She gulped and continued stripping down until her white tank top, battered red Converse, and jeans were lying in a pile beside her.

The blonde looked Beca over and smiled. _She is so much hotter than I thought. Those boyfriend jeans might be crazy hot, but mismatched blue panties and leopard print bra are so much better._

“We going swimming or what?” Beca asked as she hugged herself nervously and crossed her legs. There was a bit of a chill in the Austrian summer air and goosebumps had begun to breakout across Beca’s skin. Luisa, in comparison, stood tall and confident with no signs of goosebumps and, as Beca noticed, perfect abs.

“Of course, tiny maus,” Luisa smiled. “Race you there!”

With that, the leggy blonde took off running. There was no contest. Luisa had long legs and for every step she took, it felt to Beca like she was taking at least five. And Beca had never been a runner, but Luisa obviously was. The way she easily fell into a pace and how a wild smile broke out across her face as she glanced back at Beca.

Beca was so distracted by the expression of pure joy on Luisa’s face, her foot caught on a piece of uneven ground and she stumbled. While she didn’t fall, it set her back significantly. By the time she was running again, Luisa was in midair as she cannonballed into the deep end of the pool.

Rolling her eyes, Beca followed her in although she choose a more graceful entrance than Luisa’s massive splash. Both of them were laughing when they finally came up for air and Beca clung to Luisa, who was the stronger swimmer. The blonde carried Beca back towards water where she could stand.

“You didn’t tell me that the pool was heated,” Beca said as she held tightly to Luisa. She was winded from the run and gasping for air after her time underwater. “I may have actually won that race.”

Luisa chuckled. “With those tiny legs of yours, maus?”

“You have to stop calling me that,” the brunette objected. “It’s a ridiculous nickname. I’m not that small; I’m like 5’2”.”

“Exactly, you are tiny like a maus.” Luisa explained.

“Maybe I should just start calling you moose, because you’re so big.” Beca retorted.

The blonde smiled. “Moose and maus. I like it.’

Beca rolled her eyes.

* * *

 

Luisa’s parents paced the lavish living room of their Berlin house. It wasn’t the formal living room, where they saw guests, but no would guess that from the obviously expensive furniture that decorated the room. The walls were bare aside from large windows with a beautiful city view.

It had been six days now. Six days since their daughter Luisa had disappeared. Recently, they had sent out some of their personal security to attempt to track her down although they had yet to call in the police. The government process was too slow and inefficient. Neither of them liked slow. They liked things done when they wanted them done.

“Mr. and Mrs. Müller?” Their head of security asked, knocking on the partially opened door.

“Come in,” Luisa’s mother replied, although it sounded more like an order than an invitation. “Do you have any news on Luisa’s whereabouts? We need her back as soon as possible.”

The head of security nodded. “Like you advised, we were going through the security footage at your other homes and we found something.”

He took out several printed out photographs from the security camera. The images were slightly blurry as the two girls in them were moving. The first was an image of a blonde girl, who was obviously Luisa, as she did a cannonball into the pool while a brunette chased after her. The second photo was of Luisa and the brunette kissing in the swimming pool.

Luisa’s mother shoved the images away in disgust. “Are you certain this is Luisa?”

“Of course,” their head of security assured them. “I wouldn’t have come to you unless I was certain. We ran facial recognition software on the images just in case. It’s Luisa.”

“And who’s the girl with her?” Luisa’s father demanded, his voice tight.

The security chief shook his head. “We couldn’t get an ID on her, sir. Which is not a bad thing. The software mostly draws from public records such a criminal ones. It simply means that the girl your daughter was with does not have a criminal record.”

Luisa’s mother snorted before beginning to speak sarcastically: “Because that’s what I’m worried about, if my daughter’s secret lover has a criminal record.”

“Darling, perhaps we should calm down.” Luisa’s father said as he reached out to calm down his wife, but she simply shrugged off his hand.

“Now is not the time!” She snapped and stormed out the room, taking the pictures with her. She paused briefly to toss them into the garbage.


	6. Chapter 6

Anxiety kept Luisa awake her whole first night back in Germany. Her mind was filled with thoughts of her parents that were impossible to ignore. Ever since running into Pieter, she couldn’t help but fear that he would say something to her family despite his promise. Even if he didn’t, they had so many people looking for her there was no way that she would be able to evade them forever.

She spent hours lying in bed, tossing and turning only to get a few minutes of sleep. Finally, at three in the morning, Luisa picked up her cellphone to see what was going on in the world. It was a habit. Back when she’d had her smartphone, she would read the news or plan a work out for the next day. Now, she only had her hunk-of-junk prepaid cellphone.

There was a text from Beca from 12:02AM.

Like every time she saw that there was a new text from Beca, Luisa’s stomach clenched up anxiously. No matter how excited she was to hear from Beca, she lived in perpetual fear that her new girlfriend would find out the truth about her. People never reacted well when they heard the truth.

Learning the person they were dating was the sole heir to over a billionaire dollar fortune, multiple houses across the world, a small fleet of luxury cars, and even a private jet tended to be a shock. There was a look that her last girlfriend had gotten when she found out. It could only be described as hunger. Hunger for money, power, and so much more than just Luisa.

It was that look that ended the relationship.

_It’s only a text, it won’t hurt you._ Luisa thought and opened it.

Beca’s text read: **Hey, I can’t meet you for breakfast in Passau cause of my parents. They want to go on some tour that morning. How’s dinner instead?**

**Sure** , Luisa typed out but decided to wait till morning to send it. She didn’t want Beca to worry about why she was up so late.

Instead, she decided to risk a phone call to Pieter. He had always been a lot like her and this included occasionally being up at strange times of night. She could only hope that tonight they were in sync and he was up as well.

Pieter answered on the third ring.

“Who is this?” he asked, sounding sleepy. He hadn’t been up, but he was now.

“Luisa.”

This obviously seemed to wake him up. “How are you? Where are you? Wait, don’t tell me. I don’t want to be responsible for accidentally telling your parents.”

“I’m fine and I wouldn’t have told you anyway,” Luisa replied with a small smile. Obviously, he hadn’t broken yet and told her parents. He was still protecting her. Like he always seemed to.

She could hear the relief in Pieter’s voice when he spoke again. “Good. Your parents have been trying to talk to me about you, but I just told them I’m busy. I don’t want them to get you while they’re still mad.”

He paused and Luisa’s heart started pounding as he exhaled loudly.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen them this mad any other time that you ran away. You should call them or something. Or just stay away until they cool off. Your mother is practically breathing fire and your dad – my mom saw him yesterday – and she says he looks like someone took all the air out of him.”

Luisa sighed and rubbed her temples. “Thanks for letting me know.”

“Of course.” Pieter replied. “You’re my best friend, Luisa. I want the best for you.”

“I know.”

“That’s why I’m telling you that you definitely need to go to sleep. I have no idea where you are, but it’s late where I am and I’m betting it’s late where you are, too. Unless you’re in like Australia or America. You aren’t are you?”

Luisa laughed and, even though Pieter couldn’t see her, rolled her eyes. “No, I’m not in America or Australia. But I’m not telling you where I am. Goodnight, Pieter.”

She hung up before he had the chance to answer.

* * *

 

A whole day of being with peppered by Sheila about her new “friend” was about as Beca thought it would get until Sheila suggested that they have a girls night with Luisa. While Beca did have to give her stepmother some credit for being so having her back when it came to Luisa, it didn’t mean she wanted to spend some time with both of them.

And the brunette had a sneaking suspicion that Sheila was on to the fact that Luisa and Beca were more than friends.

Still, there was no excuse that Beca could come up with and ended up having to agree to the girls’ night. Unfortunately, this concession was reached less than an hour before she was supposed to meet with Luisa.

“I’m so glad that we’re doing this Beca,” Sheila babbled as she looked on her phone for restaurant suggestions.

“I am, too,” Beca lied and pulled her phone out of her pocket. When she tried to turn it on, she got a battery warning before the phone automatically shut itself off. The brunette bit her lip and tossed her cellphone into her bag.

Sheila sighed. “Where did you say we were supposed to meet your friend Luisa tonight?”

“By the ship.”

“That’s perfect. I’m just not finding any place around her that I really want to eat at so I was thinking we could just eat dinner on the boat. Do you know if Luisa has any allergies or dietary restrictions?” Sheila asked as she put her own cellphone away. By now, they were all making their way back to the boat since the tour had ended. Dr. Mitchell was trailing behind the two of them, but he was on a conference call and wasn’t paying any attention.

“She hasn’t mentioned any and we’ve had a couple meals together so I don’t think there’s anything you need to be worried about.” Beca explained. She was itching to get back to the boat, put her phone on the charger, and warn Luisa about the change of plans. However, it seemed like Sheila didn’t seem to share Beca’s drive to get back and they were walking at a leisurely pace.

“Is something wrong?” Sheila asked her, picking up on her apprehension. “Did something happen with Luisa?”

“No, of course not.” The brunette blushed and let her hair fall more in her face to hide how pink her cheeks were becoming.

Sheila sighed and, mercifully, gave up on trying to make conversation for the remainder of the walk back to the ship. She did insist on pointing out things of historical or cultural significance and would make them all stop to take pictures. Beca would pose with her father and stepmother and force a smile each time, but was never able to make the smile reach her eyes.

_It’s like she’s trying to make years of family photos in just one trip,_ Beca thought after one such stop.

* * *

 

They finally arrived back at the boat. By that time, it was ten minutes past the time that Beca told Luisa to meet her there and the blonde was waiting there, her phone to her ear. She ended the call as soon as she saw Beca and smiled in relief.

“Hey!” Luisa called and half-walked, half-jogged over to them.

“I’m sorry that I wasn’t answering your calls or texts.” Beca apologized immediately as she hugged Luisa. She had noticed the tall blonde’s worried look as soon as she’d seen her. “My phone died.”

Luisa hugged her back. “It’s fine. I just wanted to make sure you were okay. You know how things happen some times. Pretty girl alone in Europe—“

“You thought I got human trafficked!” Beca exclaimed and rolled her eyes. Behind her, her father started to interject that it was a legitimate concern, but Luisa started laughing.

“I was kidding. I think you can handle yourself.” The blonde leaned in closer and whispered in Beca’s ear, getting so close the brunette could feel her hot breath on her neck. “ _Feisty maus_.”

Beca blushed a bit as they pulled apart, but managed to compose herself quickly enough that her parents wouldn’t notice how flustered Luisa made her. She pushed a few loose strands of hair behind her ear and Luisa couldn’t help but smile. The blonde loved the way Beca looked with her hair behind her ear and the way it showed off the curve of her neck.

“Becs and I have a bit of a surprise, Luisa,” Sheila said as she stepped closer to the two teenage girls. “I suggested that we all do a girls’ night and have dinner together on the ship together. Of course, it will be my treat and you’re welcome to get anything you’d like.”

Although she was a bit taken aback by the suggestion, Luisa put on the smile she had always used when dealing with her parents’ wealthy friends and nodded. Sheila returned the smile and began to lead them towards the boat. As they walked, Beca’s stepmother explained that Luisa would also be welcome to sleep on the coach in the common area between the bedrooms that night.

“That’s very generous. Thank you.” Luisa replied and then realized she would need to find some way to bring her motorcycle onboard. “But can you give me a second. I have to run and get my bag. Can I meet you at your cabin?”

“Of course,” Beca jumped in before Sheila or Dr. Mitchell could say anything. “Our cabin is 207 and all you have to do is knock.”

“Thanks, I’ll see you all in about five minutes.” Luisa darted off before Beca’s parents got the chance to stop her or question her.

She wove through the crowd and, when she was about thirty feet away, saw two men who obviously stood out from the crowd standing by her motorcycle. One was on his cellphone and the other was examining the license plate. Despite their efforts to look natural, both looked out of place and Luisa recognized one of the men as a member of her parent’s security team.

The blonde didn’t waste a moment. She turned around and put up the hood of her jacket before slowly walking back towards the boat. It was challenging to keep herself from breaking into a dead sprint, but she knew that would draw their attention and that was the last thing that she wanted.

Just to make sure that no one was following her, Luisa took the long way back to the ship and arrived at Beca’s cabin twenty minutes after the promised five. She knocked on the door and Dr. Mitchell answered it. He looked down at her a bit uncomfortably and she could hear a phone start to ring back in the cabin.

“They went up to get a table. The restaurant is two floors up; can’t miss it. Sorry, but I really need to take this call.” He told her before shutting the door in her face.

Luisa shook her head and started up towards the stairs again. Her shoulders were starting to ache from carrying around her backpack all day and she couldn’t wait to get to have a meal she wouldn’t have to pay for. Now that her bike was gone and her parents were so close on her trail, she felt the exhaustion hitting her like a freight train.

_I have no idea how I’m going to get through this dinner,_ Luisa thought as she took the stairs up two at a time. Even though she was exhausted, she didn’t want to be any later than she already was. _Although, it can’t be that bad…_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My apologies about there not being as much becommissar in this chapter, but I promise that there is a lot more coming your way in the next couple chapters. However, I do have a bit of a warning. While I've been updating very frequently recently, summer is almost over and I will be moving in to college for my freshman year in only 7 days. 
> 
> I do hope to update this story at least once a week when I start school, but I just thought I should warn all of you that you won't be getting updates every couple days anymore.
> 
> Thanks so much for your patience!


	7. Chapter 7

“I’m sorry that I’m late,” Luisa apologized as she sat down at the table with Beca and Sheila. They’d already ordered an appetizer that sat between them almost completely eaten. Both looked bored as Beca was staring at her dead cellphone and Sheila was looking around, obviously lost with how to talk to her stepdaughter.

“It’s fine, dear.” Sheila assured her, immediately perking up when she saw Luisa. She gestured to the chair across from her and next to Beca and Luisa took the empty seat, smiling down at Beca.

“I’m so glad you made it,” Beca said and took Luisa’s hand under the table, squeezing gently.

Luisa let her hand go after a moment so she could take a brief look at the menu. The waiter was circling, obviously wanting to get their order as early as he could on such a busy night. She skimmed the menu and picked one of the first things she saw; she’d never been a picky eater.

Barely a minute after Luisa set down her menu, the waiter came by to take their order before scurrying off to attend to his other tables.

It was a very busy night in the small restaurant aboard the boat. A sudden turn in the weather had forced many people to stay in for dinner and now there was a line outside of the door. The staff all looked rather panicked, Luisa noted as the table beside theirs was hurriedly cleared. The noise in the room was also above usual level and the blonde hardly noticed Beca speaking to her until the brunette poked her arm.

“Yes?” Luisa asked and turned to see Beca nodding to Sheila.

“I was just asking where you were from in Germany.” Sheila repeated, having to raise her voice to be heard.

“Berlin.” Luisa replied honestly. There was no point in lying about that and she knew that if she told too many lies she would eventually trip up and be caught.

“Wow,” Sheila said as the waiter returned to refill their water glasses. “I did a semester abroad at a university there when I was a junior in college. So a long time ago.”

Luisa smiled. “Did you enjoy it?”

“A little too much,” Sheila grinned. “I may have sampled far too many local beers to remember a lot of it.”

Beca stared at her stepmother in astonishment. She had never thought of Sheila as the type of person who had fun as her stepmother generally spent her Friday nights watching House Hunters marathons. Sometimes House Hunters: International if she was feeling adventurous. Trying to picture her as someone who had a good time – someone like Luisa – was nearly impossible.

“Don’t look so shocked, Beca.” Sheila said when she noticed Beca’s expression. The brunette blushed and her hair fell more over her face as she tried to hide her embarrassment.

_She looks so cute when she blushes,_ Luisa thought and smiled at Beca, reaching under the table to covertly give the brunette’s hand a reassuring squeeze. Instead, she accidently squeezes rather high up on the brunette’s thigh causing Beca to turn completely crimson.

Luckily for Beca, the waiter swoops in to her rescue by bringing their food at the perfect time to distract Sheila from what is going on between the two girls.

* * *

 

“I’m so glad that we got out of there,” Beca giggled as she pulled Luisa along behind her as they walked along the deck of the boat. The night air was warm and a gentle breeze blew past as the boat moved along slowly. They had left the bright lights of the city behind and the fluorescent lights that lit the deck flickered.

“I am, as well,” Luisa agreed as they found an empty spot on the deck at the back of the boat so they could watch the wake left behind by the cruise ship. “It started to get awkward after a while.”

Beca laughed. “That’s one way to put it.”

“It was an accident,” Luisa stammered. She realized that this must be how Beca felt often – flustered. For once, the blonde wasn’t the calm and in control person that she usually was. She felt awkward and out of place. On the run from her family, without her motorcycle, and her life spiraling out of control.

“I know,” Beca said, leaning back against the wall. Under the flickering lights, her skin looked almost white, but Luisa didn’t care. To her, the girl she was looking at, as she pulled out a piece of gum and popped it into her mouth, was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.

The blonde took a step towards Beca, who had started talking about her plans for college in the fall.

“I’ll be going to Barden University because my Dad’s a professor there.” The brunette sighed. “I didn’t want to go there because it’s only 20 minutes away from my house and I wanted to get away. I wanted to go to L.A. and get my career started. Atlanta isn’t exactly the music capital of the United States.”

“Then why is your family forcing you to go to Barden if it’s not a school that you like or that will help you achieve your goals?” Luisa asked, but she already knew the answer. It was the same as why her family did everything that they did even though she didn’t agree.

“Because it’s convenient for them.”

Luisa grimaced, but Beca didn’t notice as she continued to speak.

“And it’s free because my Dad’s a professor and college is super expensive in the United States, but I could have totally gotten a scholarship to a different school. My grades were pretty good in high school.”

The blonde nodded, her lips pursed into a tight line. She leaned against the wall beside Beca, her shoulder pressing against the cool surface as she faced the brunette.

“Sorry about that,” Beca apologized, running a hand through her hair anxiously. She glanced away from Luisa and stared off into space for a few moments. “I just hate that I’m so trapped. I feel like I’m not even in control of my own life.”

“I understand.”

Beca scoffed. “You’re travelling all over Europe on your own because your parents let you. You even have a motorcycle. My dad would have a heart attack if I even asked for a motorcycle. You have all the freedom in the world.”

The blonde felt her stomach clench and she felt like she was going to be sick from the anxiety. Beca’s piercing gaze had returned and did nothing to absolve her guilt. She had lied to this girl for days and it had to end.

“Actually, I haven’t been travelling all over Europe with my parent’s blessing. Not exactly.”

“What do you mean?” Beca raised a questioning eyebrow.

“I ran away from home a day before I ran into you.” Luisa took a deep breath, steeling herself to tell the rest of it. Beca was staring at her intently with wide eyes and an open mouth. “My parents are very wealthy and they want me to marry this boy because his parent’s would then agree to sell us some valuable technology or something like that. I don’t totally understand it.”

The blonde paused to gauge Beca’s reaction and was startled by the sympathy in her eyes. She had expected anger, fury, or revulsion. Maybe even disappointment. Nothing could have prepared her for pity.

“Luisa…”

“Can I just tell the rest?” Luisa’s voice cracked and she felt tears pricking at her eyes. “I need to get it out.”

“Go ahead.” Beca said encouragingly.

“I needed to get away so I ran away and got on a train to Budapest. I’m their oldest child – their heir - and, at this moment because of the deal, I’m valuable to them. They desperately want me back and have the resources to hunt me down. Their personal security team is likely searching for me along with people that they’ve hired.”

Beca let out a breath that she didn’t realize she’d been holding until Luisa paused. “That’s insane.”

“Tell me about it,” Luisa nodded. “And they’re getting close. The reason I was late to dinner was because when I went to go back for my bike I saw a bunch of men who were obviously sent by my parents watching it. If I’d gone over to it, they would have caught me. Luckily, they didn’t notice me, but I still had to sneak back here in case I was being followed.”

“It sounds like you have a lot of practice escaping from people like this. How often has this happened?” The brunette’s voice was filled with concern.

“I’ve run away a couple times before but things never got like this. This feels different and…I’m scared. I’m very scared.” Luisa’s voice broke and she wiped angrily her eyes.

_I’m strong, I don’t cry._ The blonde told herself.

Beca impulsively closed the distance between them and wrapped her arms around Luisa. The blonde stood there stiffly for a moment before she hugged Beca back and clung to her.

“It’ll be okay, Luisa, I promise.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the wait! I've officially moved into and started college and wow I'm so busy. Oh well, no one said being pre-med would be easy. I'll be trying to post about once a week now - probably on Tuesdays. Thanks for your patience and my apologies about the short chapter.


	8. Chapter 8

“Beca…” Dr. Mitchell and Sheila sat across from her at the dinner table. It was a quiet night at the restaurant and there were only a few other people there, but most of them were at least a couple tables away from them. The light was dim as the restaurant was supposed to be a romantic place to have dinner.

“Yeah?” Beca asked as she picked at the mushroom risotto that Sheila had decided they should all split as an appetizer.

The looks on her father and stepmother’s faces were classic. Dr. Mitchell looked a cross between angry and nervous. She could tell that he was uncertain about confronting her and also desperately wanted to check his phone to make sure the graduate student he’d left his research with was doing her job. Sheila had on her concerned expression that made her look vaguely constipated.

“We’ve been wondering about you and Luisa,” Dr. Mitchell said when his phone chirped and he looked down at it. Sheila swooped in and snatched it from his hands, silencing it and placing it out of his reach.

“Now is not the time for phone calls,” she scolded him and Beca was surprised to see her father’s cheeks turn slightly pink.

They both turned back to her and she looked down at her food once again, suddenly fascinated by the mushrooms.

“Is something going on between you and Luisa?” Sheila asked, her voice tentative.

Beca shoved as much mushroom risotto into her mouth as she could just as Sheila asked the question. Her father and stepmother watched her expectantly as she chewed slowly. At least, she had time to think of an answer now.

Neither she nor Luisa had brought up telling Dr. Mitchell or Sheila the truth about their relationship. The news that Luisa was actually a runaway heiress – a fact Beca had double-checked by Googling Luisa’s name – had been a major distraction. She’d had a million questions for her new girlfriend about why she’d left, what she was planning to do next, and, most importantly, if she would ever go home.

Luisa, it turned out, was a meticulous planner in every other aspect of her life aside from running away. For someone who had done so multiple times before, she was remarkably unprepared. She didn’t know what she was going to do next aside from she would spend the time that Beca was in Europe with her. After that, she had no idea what she was going to do and she was running out of money.

“Beca?” Sheila asked. “Are you okay?”

“Fine,” Beca said through the risotto so it came out indiscernible.

“Pardon?” Sheila asked. Beca hated how her stepmother always said “pardon” instead of just saying “what?” like a normal person. It was just one of those “Sheila-isms” that drove her absolutely crazy.

The brunette sighed and set down her fork. “I’m. Fine.”

Dr. Mitchell took his daughter’s irritability as his cue to jump into the conversation. “Beca that is not the proper way to speak to your stepmother.”

Sheila started to say something and put her hand on Dr. Mitchell’s arm, but he didn’t give her the chance to get even a word out.

“Your stepmother was very kind to plan this trip and invite you along despite how rude you insist on being to her daily. Being here on this trip is a privilege, Beca. It is most certainly not a right—“

“Stephen!” Sheila snapped and both Beca and Dr. Mitchell stared at her openmouthed. She was the type of person who so rarely raised her voice. “I’m sorry, darling, but Beca and I have actually gotten along swimmingly on this trip. This trip brought us closer together and she even trusted me when she told me that she’s dating Luisa.”

It took only a couple seconds for Beca’s father’s face to lose all color as he looked back and forth between his wife and his daughter. When he spoke, his voice barely came out as more than a squeak: “Is this true?”

“Uh…” Beca looked around, desperately hoping for some kind of out.

“Beca.” Sheila said a bit more gently than when her husband spoke. “It’s okay.”

The brunette sighed as she looked down at the table, unwilling to make eye contact. “I’ve been dating Luisa since we first met in Budapest. She’s been travelling so we figured that she may as well just go to the same places that I was going so that we could see what would happen.”

Dr. Mitchell simply sat there as still as statue.

“Are you okay, Stephen?” Sheila asked and nudged him.

“I didn’t even know you were gay.” He finally managed to say. “You had that boyfriend Jesse for a little while.”

“I don’t know that I am gay.” Beca sighed. “I liked Jesse and I like Luisa.”

* * *

 

By the time Beca was returning to her room, things in the Mitchell family had settled down nearly completely. Much to Beca’s relief. The rest of dinner had been an ordeal as her father grilled her about each of her friends and whether or not they also liked girls. Sheila had stepped in and forced the conversation to end right around dessert.

Luisa had found the whole thing hilarious and could barely contain her laughter when Beca returned to her bedroom – where Luisa had been hiding out.

“It’s not funny!” Beca protested and her father turned a little red.

Clutching her sides, Luisa sat on Beca’s bed and caught her breath after laughing so hard she had nearly started crying.

“It’s quite amusing, maus,” the blonde argued and got to her feet. Her voice occasionally cracked and made it seem like she might burst out laughing all over again. “Especially how your father started to inquire about your sex life.”

Beca’s cheeks turned crimson. “Sheila shut him up after that.”

“This is exactly why I will never tell my parents,” Luisa said as she crossed the room to get her pajamas out of her bag.

“Never?”

“Never.” The blonde repeated as she stripped off her black t-shirt, revealing the lacy red bra beneath. It was exactly the kind of thing that Beca pictured Luisa wearing and now that the real thing was in front of her she could barely look away.

Luisa noticed and wiggled her butt a little as she pulled down her pants. “Like what you see?”

Beca turned around after she noticed that her girlfriend’s panties matched her bra and were extremely small.

“I will take that as a yes.” The blonde purred playfully as she pulled on the shorts and tank top that she had taken to sleeping int. “You can turn around now. I’m dressed.”

The brunette turned around, half expecting to see Luisa totally naked and lying on her bed. However, the blonde had put on glasses and was fully clothed.

“You wear glasses.” Beca stated and the expression Luisa gave her made her response clear _Thank you, Captain Obvious._ “I-I’ve just never seen you wearing them before.”

“I usually wear contacts.” Luisa informed her as she grabbed the extra pillow from Beca’s bed and tossed it onto the couch.

“You’re sleeping on the couch?” Beca asked.

The blonde smiled as she walked past her girlfriend. “I wouldn’t want to make you uncomfortable by sleeping next to you. Besides, you might not end up getting much sleep that way.”

* * *

The boat docked early the next morning and Luisa snuck off the ship before anyone besides the crew was awake. Beca’s parents didn’t know her motorcycle had been taken and that she was now travelling with them on the boat. She was afraid of what they would do if they found out the truth of who she was or if they found out she was sleeping in Beca’s room. The latter might actually be worse even if it wouldn’t get her sent home, it might end her relationship with Beca.

As Luisa walked around nearby the port, she saw a small convenience store that advertised the fact that it was selling prepaid cellphones. It had been days since she’d talked to Pieter and she was certain he was worried about her. If he got too worried, he might even spill her secret to her parents.

_I have to get one,_ Luisa sighed and walked into the store.

Convenience stores seemed to be the same way no matter what country that they were no. While the exact contents of stores varied by country, they all seemed to mostly carry junk food, soda, and alcohol. Even the counter clerks seemed to be the same and the one standing behind the counter in this store looked like all the others: tired.

Luisa purchased the phone without saying more than two words to the clerk and those were just that she didn’t want a receipt.

When she walked out of the store, she immediately dialed Pieter’s number and it only took two rings until he answered.

“Luisa?”

“Of course.” The blonde smiled as she sat down on a curb across the street from a coffee shop and watched the people going in and out. Mostly, businessmen and women in suits chattering into their Bluetooth earpieces as sucked down espresso.

“It’s good to know that you’re okay. You are okay, right?”

“I’m fine, but I can’t tell you where I am. I’m sure that you can understand my reasons. Besides, neither of us truly know what my parents are capable of and I don’t want them to have any more clues as to my location. Not yet.”

Pieter was silent for a moment and then he asked: “Are you ever coming home?”

“I don’t have a home.”

“Yes, you do, Luisa. You can stay with me and I’m sure you can talk to your parents and get them to understand. I’m worried that you’re blowing this whole thing out of proportion. I don’t want you to make things worse than they already are.” Pieter said gently.

Luisa’s stomach twisted and her mouth stretched into a tight line. She ended the call and tossed the phone into a trash can as she walked back to the boat.

_He just doesn’t understand,_ she thought as she went in search of a less busy coffee shop. She hadn’t had any caffeine this morning and talking with Pieter had made her even more irritable than usual.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long! Things have been super busy in my life, but I will keep updating this story as regularly as possible.
> 
> Also, if you could check out my blog - it's mostly book reviews - that would be amazing. It's bookamania.blogspot.com and it would really mean a lot to me if you checked out some of the reviews. 
> 
> Again, sorry that it took so long and that this chapter was short. There will definitely be some action and maybe some fluff in the next one.


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